Mabunda said his client was confident that he was not in the video footage in question.
Victor Mthethwa Majola’s attorney, Dumisani Mabunda, has accused the state of solely relying on video evidence in the murder case of Warrick “DJ Warras” Stock.
Majola appeared in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Thursday for his bail application.
Stock was fatally shot on 16 December outside a building near the Carlton Centre in Johannesburg’s central business district (CBD).
Police arrested the 44-year-old Majola on 22 December, and he is facing a schedule 6 offence of premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
Video footage request
On Thursday, the defence requested the court to order the state to show video footage it claimed shows Majola with the alleged shooter on the day of the incident.
Mabunda said that showing the footage would strengthen the state’s case and assist Majola in his bail application.
“We highlighted the importance of this footage so that it can be brought forward to court to assist with the bail application for the sake of fairness. This court should conduct a judicial evaluation of the various factors in the interest of justice,” said Mabunda.
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“For the sake of justice and fairness, it’s a humble request that the state provide us with the footage. They have always been saying they have footage.
“We must not lose sight of the fact that the investigating officer came here and the first thing that he said was that they placed the matter on the roll based on the footage they viewed. Therefore, the viewing of this footage is very crucial for the purpose of this bail.”
‘Majola not in footage’
Mabunda said his client was confident that he was not in the video footage in question.
“We want the viewing of this footage, confidently so, so that this court is able to make a determination on whether there are lies in this matter or the investigators are being truthful with this evidence. This court needs to have all the evidence to be able to make a decision on this matter.
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“The footage will also help us prove exceptional circumstances. If the state fails to provide the video footage, it weakens their case. This footage is a mystery. Police have been out in public talking about the footage; everybody knows about it. It’s not a secret. This is the only thing they want to ride on as far as we are concerned.”
Defence must prove its case
However, state prosecutor Vincent Mochabela said the onus was on the defence to prove exceptional circumstances that supported Majola’s release.
“The state is not required to present evidence in rebuttal until the applicant for bail has presented a prima facie case for his release,” said Mochabela.
“The applicant has not established a prima facie case for his release. The state requests that the court refuse the application of the defence. We are dealing with a sensitive matter. We don’t want the footage to circulate because it will compromise our case.
“The footage is not readily available at this stage. The burden is on the defence to convince this court that exceptional circumstances exist for their client to be released on bail.”
Mochabela stated that the assertion that the state was relying solely on the video footage was false.
“We’re not relying on the footage only. We have an eyewitness who made a statement. A formal identification parade was conducted during which the said eyewitness identified this person [Majola],” said Mochabela.
“There is also circumstantial evidence. There are photos of the deceased, particulars and motor vehicles of the deceased which were found inside the phone of the accused.”
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